4.7m flat panel TVs sold in SE Asia this year

Retail sales tracking by market research company GfK reveal that more TV sets were being sold in every single market across the SouthEast Asia region in the month prior to the commencement of the WorldC up. GfK retail audit of TV sales for May 2014 reported nearly 957,000 units sold for the combined markets of Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand.

According to reports, demand for TV in May this year surged significantly; by 15 per cent more than the average sales volume achieved in the non-peak months of February, March and April for all markets in the range of 4 to 31 per cent. Thailand showed the greatest spike, followed by 19 per cent in Vietnam, and 16 per cent in Singapore. It is worth mentioning that the 232,000 TV sets snapped up in Thailand in May was the highest monthly sales achieved by the market in 2014 so far.

“It is interesting to highlight that this trend of higher demand for TVs in the month leading to World Cup was also observed four years ago,” said Gerard Tan, Account Director for Digital World in GfK. “GfK’s weekly retail audit for TV sales further showed apparent spikes in take-up volume in various June weeks for Singapore, Vietnam, and Thailand to achieve the highest weekly sales since January.”

Overall TV sales in the region have slowed down after several years of rapid growth in developing markets where large number of households were upgrading to flat panel TV from the traditional CRT. With the near completion of the switchover, consumers are now focusing on new features and technology, as well as bigger screen sizes instead.

For instance, Internet-enabled TVs are gaining share in Southeast Asia, accounting for 17 per cent of all volume sales this year—an increment of 5 per cent additional share of the pie from last year. Highest penetration for this technology segment is seen in Singapore, where it makes up more than half (56 per cent) of TV sold. Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia reported over a fifth of the total local market sales volume coming from this segment, at 26, 22 and 21 percent respectively.

Sales penetration of 3D TVs have reached nearly 8 per cent in the region. In Singapore, over one in every four (26 per cent) sets of TV sold has 3D technology, while Thailand has the next highest share for local 3D TV sales at 12 per cent. All other markets are still hovering below the 10 percent level for the segment.

In terms of screen sizes, consumers are also increasingly buying larger boxes for their homes. Still dominating the market is the 32” segment although its share has declined by 5 per cent from last year to account for 41 per cent share in volume terms in the first five months of this year. Findings in May showed a considerable growth in share of the 43”- 49” segment which saw a rise to almost 7 per cent share—the highest so far this year.

“We expect the Ultra-HD models to be the next focus of the more affluent consumers who are looking to get their hands on the latest TV technology as prices become more affordable with more brands and models being launched in the market,” said Tan. “Events such as the World Cup has created more awareness for larger screen sizes and more advanced models, which will help drive the market in 2014—expected to remain an exciting year for TV,” he concluded.